Overnight Train and Delhi--Feb.16

As fate would have it I am just a little bit too long for my bed; meaning my feet stuck out just enough that anyone walking by would unexpectedly run into my feet. I also managed to drop a shoe on the lady below me by accident while waking up in the morning.
Second impressions of Delhi after spending nearly two weeks in Varanasi:it is shockingly cleaner and traffic laws seem to somewhat apply. At the very least they have traffic lights and roundabouts are abundant.

From the train station we were picked up by a driver from Kashmir Arts and proceeded to their Delhi warehouse. The selection, price and quality of their products was better then almost all places I had visited around Varanasi and as such I spent 2 1/2 hours going through their stock selecting pieces. Hopefully Angus approves--I think we will anyways otherwise I would not have selected them. Then again i could be way off base. Luckily nothing is set in stone and I will find out in the morning how I did. One company is not enough for today so we head off towards our next destination making it half way there before we are left on the corner of a street with our luggage--we were changing companies and drivers. My family will not like reading this however for better or worse I have given up on seat-belts here. This is partly because in most backseats the seat-belt just does not work and also because I have come to accept if we crash, aside from those daily bumps, it will be in such a glorious fashion that it would not help. I was going to write Delhi is like Busan only dirtier and less hi-tech however in Korea they follow most laws and fear/respect the military and government that is more true here, still it is like no place I have been and each city has such a distinctive personality.

I hate talking about money with people as it is a sore subject of mine, however it did come up one night with Simon and Ananada. It turns out what I make in a month after taxes would take Ananada two years to earn. Another crazy thought is what I was wearing that night would take him 3 months to afford. Of course the cost of living is way lower, in two weeks I have spent about $16. A lot of that has to do with staying with Hamid and hardly having a social life. Even still, one day when I was sightseeing and eating out a lot I only spent $6. I have also only had two beer since arriving in India. Add all of that together and it makes for an inexpensive two weeks. I may owe Angus a bit when I return from all the traveling we have been doing although I am kind of thinking it would potentially all be business expenses. Even on this trip to Delhi we are staying at a friend of Hamid's house. In the end the cost does not matter it is just strange to think about.

Our second stop was Overseas carpets Limited which is the company Vargha and I visited briefly before our flight to Varanasi. Today with Hamid I feel far more comfortable and clear on what I am doing which is in stark contrast to that second day. A far more successful day--at least until Angus gets a look at my choices. I kind of feel like the places I have taken the majority of the photos are places Angus would have visited himself, then again from what I have been told by the suppliers they recognize his name however have not seen him in many years. With that in mind he may not have visited them on his normal trip. Good day in my books anyways 150 pictures of around 90 carpets. Long day though, as I hopped on a train at 1am, arrived in Delhi at 9:30am and worked until nearly 8pm plus another hour labeling photos and struggling with a bad internet connection. I am beginning to feel productive.